The Rightful King
by The Glass Jellyfish
Summary: Post-Thor: The Dark World. Loki has taken the throne; Asgard has never had a better King. Thunder sounds on the horizon, only this time the God of Mischief is not afraid. Instead, he has the upper hand, and is ready to do anything to keep his place on the throne.
1. The beginning

**Chapter One**

Loki grinned at the guards, who were too shocked to speak. This was by far the biggest trick he had played on them by a long shot - faking his death, somehow tricking Thor and replacing Odin? Impossible!

"Did you miss me?" Loki answered them with another of his darkly humorous comments. They positioned themselves to attack, but that was pointless, as the god of mischief waved his hand and sent their weapons spiraling through the air. Loki smiled. Now he was on the throne, nothing could stop him; he could feel the new lease of magic pulsing through his veins. People would finally accept him, either by force or of their own accord. He was the King-to-be, and not even Odin could change that. Thor had given up his seat on the throne, to be a 'good man', whatever that meant... Anyway, the point was no-one was here presently to stop Loki from giving rightful orders.

"Kneel." The guards instantly obeyed, using the time as a chance to plan a way out from this troublesome situation. He began to cackle wildly, partly with madness, partly with joy. "_No-one can stop me now._" He thought, watching the uncomfortable guards shift beneath his glare. Odin was fighting some meaningless battle in some trivial opponent's home, and as long as he was there, there would be no authority there to 'guide' Loki. Additionally, the All-father could be killed at war - no-one would be able to point fingers at the God of Mischief. After all, what is more a nobler death than to die for Asgard?

Ah. There was something to dwell on. Why would a man who was known to cast away the unwanted gladly and enlighten people about the ghastly truths in a damaging way deserve an honorable death? Already there was work to do for the newly crowned prince. He sighed. Oh, well. He would just have to find a way to kill Odin in a way which would be a contemptible way to die, but using a method so nobody would be able to directly point fingers at Loki.

His eyes brightened. He had an idea. One that would perhaps involve a disguised assassin, and a very unfair challenge.

A guard coughed, and Loki snapped back to the present with a mischievous grin on his face.

"Do as I say: release the prisoners and bring them to me here. Tell them there are rewards to be earned if they do my bidding."

_An hour or so later..._

"Welcome to the beginning of a new era, where the true heroes of our worlds will unite, and corporal punishment is a recognized form of justice." Loki spread his arms wide, as though about to hug the hundreds of villains facing him.

"But first, I need your help. In order to rid the worlds of Odin, I will need a trained assassin. If you feel you are up to the job, please let me know, and I will inform the chosen one of my plan. As for the rest of you; prepare for battle. I know my brother will not let me reign without a fight." Most of the audience were dazed from the shocking burst of freedom, though many of them grinned gleefully at their potential new king. If this was what he was going to in the first five minutes, they could not wait to see what his future plans were.

The guards led some of them away to reluctantly help train for battle, while a select few stayed behind for Loki to consider as his assassin.

"Hmm... You would be good as a speciality card for an attack surge, you would do well with helping me conclude our tactics, and you... What did you say your talent was?" The God of mischief was enjoying his power over the people, busy deciding who would be best for his almighty plan. The figure he had requested a name from was shrouded in a black cloak, a large hood masking his or her facial identity. Judging how slender the body was compared with the other two bulky men, he guessed the person was a woman. Loki had immediately favored her, as she was the only one who even bothered with hiding who she really was, and that proved to be an excellent strong point in assassinations. The other two stood to the side.

"Many things." The woman's voice was a chord of numerous pitches, making Loki wonder if she was being possessed by some vile creature. He inwardly shrugged. Oh, well. A possessed assassin is as good as any killer.

Little did he know, she was nothing at all like what he thought she was.

"Okay, you're on team Loki. Kill Odin, and I'll make you the richest and second-most powerful person in the universe. Kill Thor, and I'll make you my Queen." He cast these words as if they were meaningless, forcing doubt onto the hearer. There was no way in which she could trust him, period. Yet she dared to believe...

"You choose potential over presence?" The woman asked, coughing as her voice returned to maintain only one voice. Loki looked at her intensely.

"I would rather hope for a dream than to live a nightmare." One second a thoughtless godly teenager, the next a deep and powerful leader.

"Meaningful words, for one who has spent numerous years in a cell."

"You will not address me in such a way! You should think yourself lucky I haven't turned you into a ravaging monster by now! Not that that would make a difference." He spoke the last part with a small taunting smile tugging at the edges. The assassin ground her teeth, but forced herself to seem loyal - lack of trust was what broke apart all good teams, in the end.

"Very well, sir. I.. apologize if I questioned your greatness."

"Good. Now, about this plan of mine-" Loki said, gesturing towards the strategy room through a tall opening. She obediently followed, her dark cloak flowing behind her. Upon entry, she noticed a stone table and two chairs, though neither of them sat, with torches lining the walls. In the flickering glow, Loki looked devilish, as if he was about to go up in a puff of smoke any minute. The assassin swallowed, slightly nervous for the first time in years.

"Uncomfortable, are we?" Loki teased, sensing her mood. She frowned.

"No. The plan?"

"Ah, yes. Well..."


	2. Planning

**Author's Note: Thanks for following/favouriting. Please feel free to review. No really... Feel compelled to do so if you must, whatever brings you to comment on my work.**

**Chapter Two**

"That's it?" The shady woman asked, an edge to her silky human voice. It had taken exactly three sentences for the God to present his tactics. Loki cocked his head sideways.

"Does it not satisfy your planning needs?"

"It does, it's just... A little shallow." She answered carefully.

"What do you mean?" He questioned innocently. This got to her, with immediate effect.

"What do I mean? Have you not learned anything? Every time you battle for the throne, you never plan deep enough with constantly the same result! Are you blind to your own flaws? I beg you for forgiveness, yet how can you claim you are ready for Kingship if you cannot face the truth?" She screeched in a minor chord, her eyes glowing a deep shade of fury amongst the shadows. There was an unnatural quietness, while the assassin numbly watched as Loki's confident gaze crumbled to reveal the unstable man he was.

"H-how.. how _dare_ you!" He spoke slowly as he rose to his full height again, struggling to stay composed. He thrusted forward to violently grab the hood of her masking cloak, only to swipe through her image as though she were a ghost. He stumbled back a step.

"What the-?"

"Stay away from me. I work as your ally, but only I shall reveal my face, when the time comes." Her words were strong, and bewitched the Prince as he reluctantly fell under her spell.

"N-no.. You.. Dare.. To challenge _me_ with such feeble tricks?" He said, though already he was wavering. This assassin was powerful, no doubt about it. He wafted his hand in an attempt to send her flying, yet she loomed above him unmoved.

_'Give her her way.'_ A voice whispered in the back of his head. _'We_ need _to win. She is the only way.' _

He leaned against the wall, panting.

"Stop, and I will grant you control over all our planning." He gasped. How was she doing this? It was like his brother was invisibly wrestling him to the ground, and he was helpless against it. To his shock, she snorted.

"For what little of the plan there is." She chuckled, offering a hand to help the God of Mischief up. The suppressing force disappeared, much to Loki's relief.

"Please don't do that again." The experience had humbled the Prince to good manners, satisfying the assassin.

"And the same to you." She returned. Already it felt like they were making progress. Loki nervously gave her the once-over, to check she wasn't about to spar him magically to the floor. Reassured, he resumed to his natural posture, grinning.

"Sorceress?" He asked, enjoying the fun of uttering questions which he knew the answer to. She shrugged.

"Sort of." It was made clear by her tone that she wasn't going to say anything else. Still, Loki was exhilarated at having any kind of powerful being on his side - too often his brother had the advantage, with his pesky team... What were they called? The Avengers. Ha! They didn't stand a chance.

"A word of advice, sir?" The sorceress/assassin/woman suggested. Loki nodded quizzically.

"Never underestimate anything. Prepare for the worst. The bigger you think you are, the harder the fall." She spoke rhythmically in chords. He rolled his eyes.

"I'd rather be big than shrink to desperation." He said seriously. She just shook her head, realizing that it would take more than mere words to heal this fatally wounded man.

"The plan?" Loki required.

"Well, since you asked so nicely.." The assassin replied, smiling underneath her hood.

_Two hours later..._

Loki stumbled out of the strategy room, instantly breathing a sigh of relief. If it had taken the assassin this long to 'gloss' over her tactics, he felt bad for the person he had placed in charge of concluding the whole damn thing. He yawned, stretched, and wandered over to the nearest balcony. His cocky grin beamed down onto the hundreds of villains training for battle. He was loving being King; at least here he knew he was not the only insane one.

_'Prince,'_ He corrected. _'But King soon.'_

"Sir," A guard coughed awkwardly behind him. This felt too wrong, alerting the man who had previously been chained, of forthcoming dangers.

"Um... Odin has been severely wounded in battle. Thor has mistaken his father's injuries for magic, and he is heading straight here." Loki sucked in his breath sharply.

"Send for my assassin."

"Very well... your highness."

Loki spread his arms wide and used his magic to signal his presence to the freedmen. They gazed up, row after row like a Mexican wave, to see what the fuss was about. The God of mischief smiled, as warmly as he could.

"Thank you, fellow heroes, for joining me. However, I am sad to say my brother is on his way, and I shall need my best men to fight him. Whatever happens, do not let him near me. You have my blessing." The crowd shifted as they thought of the thunder due soon to come.

"Be ready for-" Suddenly the sky lit up as a funnel cloud glowing with electricity touched down on the ground below Loki.

"No.." He gasped. "Not now." He restrained himself from running as the person he loved, hated and feared most of all appeared in a familiar red cloak.

"Hello _brother._" Thor spoke, anger shortening the words to grunts.

"FIGHT HIM!" The assassin shouted suddenly from Loki's side, tugging the Prince's cloak, telling him to run. Yet he stood, paralyzed with shock as he watched his brother drown in an army of a thousand men.

"Loki!" She slapped him. He woke up, and his feet sped up through the winding corridors, his assassin supporting him.

All the while cursing himself, for he had underestimated Thor once again.


End file.
